If you have jewelry that deserves more than a pawn counter or a price tag on a card table, there is another way: a specialist sells it for you — properly, patiently, and with paperwork for every step.
More than 21,000 pieces of jewelry sold. A five-star record across more than 4,000 reviews. Antique and vintage jewelry is all we do.
Royal Regency Antique Jewelry, based in Lodi, New Jersey, sells antique, vintage and estate jewelry for people all over the world. Inherited pieces. A collection being thinned. Jewelry from a downsizing, or an estate being settled. Pieces too good — and too full of history — for a yard-sale table.
Selling a piece properly yourself means researching its maker and what it's worth, photographing it, writing the listing, answering messages from strangers, settling on a price, packing it safely and getting it posted — for every single piece. Some people have never sold a thing online and don't care to learn. Others know exactly what it takes and would rather spend their time on anything else. Either way, that work is what we take off your hands. All of it.
How It Works — Consign in Four Steps
1. Start with photographs. Wherever you are in the world, it begins with pictures and a conversation. We talk honestly about what each piece is and what it could realistically bring. No pressure, and no obligation — if your pieces aren't right for us, we'll tell you so and point you to your best option, even if it isn't us. In-person consultations are also available by appointment.
2. You set the floor. Nothing you consign is ever sold below a price you agree to in writing, and your pieces stay yours until the moment they sell. If pieces are coming to us from a distance, insured shipping is arranged together, case by case, before anything moves.
3. You don't lift a finger. Research, pricing, photography, listings, buyer messages, packing, shipping, returns — every part of selling is ours, in our shop and online stores where collectors actually look for pieces like yours. Your part is finished the moment you hand the pieces over; after that, it's statements and settlements. With your permission, a standout piece may also be featured in our educational content about antique jewelry — its maker and story told properly. Your name never appears, anywhere.
4. You get paperwork for every sale. Each sale comes with a clear statement: what the piece sold for and what you receive. Settlements are prompt once a sale has cleared, and every piece is receipted with photographs when it comes into our care. You can change your mind in the days right after signing — it's in the agreement, in writing, for any reason.
Why Consign Instead of Selling Outright?
Selling outright is fast, and fast is all it is. A pawn counter or gold buyer pays for metal and for their own risk: on a scale, a maker, an era and fine craftsmanship weigh nothing at all. The quick-cash online buyers work the same way — a price today, set by what protects them, not by what your piece is worth. An auction gives a piece one event, one room, one night; whatever the room decides is what you get. And selling it yourself genuinely works — if you want the weeks of research, photographing, listing, messaging, packing and posting that come with it.
Consignment with a specialist is the other shape entirely. The piece is researched and priced from real evidence, presented properly, and put in front of proven collectors — including buyers we know collect exactly this kind of piece — while a floor price you agreed in writing protects the bottom. It takes longer than a pawn counter. It is supposed to: that patience is precisely what your piece's full value is made of.
What We Accept
Antique and vintage jewelry is our whole trade. We accept pieces from the Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Retro and mid-century periods, including:
- Rings, including antique engagement rings
- Necklaces, pendants and lockets
- Cameos and intaglios, in shell, coral, agate and lava
- Brooches and pins
- Chatelaines and Victorian novelties
- Bracelets, bangles and Albert chains
- Earrings, charms and mourning jewelry
- Signed and maker-marked pieces, and fine gold, sterling silver and platinum jewelry with or without gemstones
Honestly stated: modern mass-produced and fashion jewelry usually isn't right for us, and if that's what a piece is, we'll tell you plainly and suggest your best route for it.
Selling Inherited or Estate Jewelry
Most of the jewelry we sell for people arrived the same way: it was inherited, and nobody quite knew what to do with it. You don't need to know what anything is — identifying pieces is our job, and it starts with photographs, group shots included.
Whole collections and whole estates are welcome. We sort through everything with you, identify the pieces worth selling properly, and tell you honestly about the rest. Executors and families also find the paperwork helps: every piece is receipted with photographs at intake, and every sale produces a statement — a clean record for the estate. There is no hurry built into any of this. Estates are settled at your pace, not ours.
Still deciding whether to sell at all? Our guide walks through every option: What to Do With Inherited Jewelry.
How Your Jewelry Is Valued
Every piece is researched before it is priced: its hallmarks, its maker, its period, its materials and condition, and what collectors are actually paying for comparable pieces — evidence drawn from real sales, including our own record of more than twenty-one thousand of them.
One confusion is worth clearing up, because nearly everyone we meet has met it. An insurance appraisal states what a piece would cost to replace, new, for insurance purposes. It was never a statement of what a buyer will pay. Resale value is a different number, set by the market — and selling into that market, at the top of it, with a floor beneath you, is exactly what consignment is for.
Safe, Insured, and Private — Wherever You Are
Distance changes nothing about how carefully this works. It starts with photographs. If you decide to go ahead, shipping is arranged together, case by case — insured, tracked, and packed to guidance we give you before anything leaves your hands. Your pieces remain your property until the moment they sell, every piece is photographed and receipted on arrival, and every sale is followed by a statement you can keep.
Privacy is absolute. Your name never appears in a listing, in our content, or anywhere else. If a standout piece is featured in our educational content — with your permission — only the piece and its story are ever told.
Why Sellers Choose Royal Regency
This is our whole trade. Royal Regency deals in antique and vintage jewelry and nothing else — gold and sterling, Victorian through Art Deco. We read the hallmarks, we know the makers, and we publish educational content teaching collectors about this jewelry. That knowledge wasn't bought or borrowed; it was built piece by piece, sale by sale, more than twenty-one thousand times. A generalist pricing your family's jewelry is guessing with a price guide. We are not generalists.
Behind the numbers sits something rarer: an audience. Our pieces are seen by proven collectors, and our records of who collects what mean the right piece can be put in front of the very buyers most likely to want it. And you are dealing with the owner — a local specialist whose record is public and whose name is on every statement — not a franchise, and not a call centre.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I sell my jewelry outright or consign it?
Selling outright pays you today, but a buyer prices in their risk and their profit, so you receive a fraction of the piece's real value. Consignment takes longer, but the piece is sold to a collector for what it is worth, with your floor price protecting the bottom. If you need cash this week, sell. If you want the piece's value, consign.
How does consignment work — do I keep ownership of my pieces?
Yes. Your pieces remain your property until the moment they sell. We hold, present and sell them on your behalf under a written agreement, and you receive a statement and a settlement for every sale.
Can I set a minimum price for my jewelry?
Yes. Every piece can carry a floor price agreed with you in writing, and nothing is ever sold below it without your written permission.
What if my jewelry doesn't sell?
Then it comes back to you — return is arranged at the end of the agreed term — or, if you'd prefer, we may offer to buy the piece from you ourselves, an offer you are entirely free to decline.
How long does consignment usually take?
It varies by piece, and honestly so: a well-matched piece can sell quickly, while a rarer one may wait for its collector. The right buyer matters more than a fast one — that patience is the trade you make for full value, and you are kept informed as sales happen.
I inherited jewelry and know nothing about it — where do I start?
With photographs. Send us pictures of what you have — group shots are fine to start with. Identifying pieces is our trade: we will tell you honestly what each piece is, what it could bring, and what we recommend, with no obligation.
Can you handle a whole inherited collection, not just single pieces?
Yes — whole collections and estates are welcome. We sort through everything with you, identify the pieces worth selling properly, and tell you honestly about the rest. Every piece is receipted with photographs, and every sale produces a statement for your records.
Do I need an appraisal or certificates before I contact you?
No. Appraisals and certificates are welcome if you have them, but they are not needed. We research every piece ourselves — hallmarks, makers, materials and the real market — before it is priced.
Why is a buyer's offer lower than my insurance appraisal?
An insurance appraisal states what it would cost to replace a piece new, for insurance purposes; it is not what a buyer will pay. Resale value is set by what collectors actually pay for comparable pieces — which is the market we sell into, and the evidence we price from.
Is it safe to ship jewelry? Is it insured?
Done properly, yes. Shipping is arranged case by case with insured, tracked services, and we guide you through packing before anything moves. Nothing travels until you are comfortable with the arrangement.
I'm outside the United States — can I still consign with you?
Yes. We work with consignors worldwide. It starts the same way everywhere: photographs and a conversation, then insured shipping arranged together if you decide to go ahead.
Should I clean or repair my antique jewelry before sending photos?
No — please don't. Cleaning can strip the patina that collectors value, and well-meaning repairs often reduce an antique piece's worth. Send photographs exactly as the piece is; if anything would help its sale, we will advise you first.
Do I pay tax when I sell inherited jewelry?
Tax rules on selling inherited property vary by country and by your own situation, so no page can answer that for you. It is a common question with a personal answer — before a significant sale, a short conversation with your own tax professional is money well spent.
Start With Photographs
An honest look costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Send photographs of your pieces, or book a consultation — by appointment, at a time and place that suits you. Email us at info@royalregencyjewelry.com or use our contact page.
